OK RDY, Canberra based start-up providing a mentor matching solution has today announced that it has signed up Women in Information and Communications (WIC) as an inaugural Community Partner.
“This is an exciting opportunity that allows WIC to provide tangible services with real benefits to women working in technology across the Canberra region” said Megan James, WIC Vice President.
“Partnering with OK RDY means we can complement the suite of networking events and activities we provide with a service that delivers broader professional and personal development opportunities to members. Importantly, the platform provides a vehicle to proactively promote diversity and inclusion outcomes.
“What I particularly like about the OK RDY product is that it that the recommendation engine is automated and matches between mentors and mentees based on alignment of the personal, professional and value-based interests of participants. This holistic approach is critical. Whether a participant is a mentor or a mentee, matches must be meaningful to ensure the best outcome for both” explained Ms James.
OK RDY Founder and CEO Tim McKay advised that he will continue to forge Community Partnerships aligned to his objective of more inclusive and diverse workplaces but that he encourages government and industry to leverage his platform to drive broader business outcomes. Mr McKay said that the most important message he heard reiterated time and again on a recent Ministerial Trade Mission to the US, is that CEOs are turning to people and culture as core assets that need to be more valued by organisations and that both need to be a focus for internal investment.
“Investing in your people through an effective mentoring platform has proven to deliver results to the bottom line of the business” said Mr McKay.
“Mentoring is a strategic tool that when done right, can attract and retain high-potential talent and accelerate leadership development. It is also an effective tool for shaping organisational culture, closing engagement and generational gaps and demonstrating to employees they are valued by the organisation. These benefits translate to the bottom line – increased retention rates, reduced absenteeism and improved productivity, combine to reduce cost and improve revenue for the business.”
“The more successful and effective the ‘matches’, the better the outcome – for mentors, mentees and the organisations that sponsor these programs. OK RDY not only guarantees higher quality matches through its AI based, data driven recommendation engine but delivers important backend data to the organisation that informs talent identification, recruitment pathways, professional development gaps and strategic skills planning, amongst other things, concluded Mr McKay.
Mr McKay is currently working with a range of businesses, tertiary institutions and government agencies to drive the need for outcome based mentoring programs.
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About OK RDY
OK RDY is a mentorship matching and data analytics platform that improves employability, diversity and cultural outcomes for employers and employees. Our unique innovation optimises mentorship opportunities via personal interests, professional skills and values-based recommendations. By leveraging smart digital technology and ‘smart’ data we provide our clients with critical metrics to help inform: talent identification; recruitment pathways; professional development needs and progress; graduate engagement opportunities; strategic skills planning; and mentor program outcomes and scalability opportunities – internal and external to the organisation.
OK RDY has been awarded as the final grant recipient for Canberra’s largest entrepreneurial program – InnovationACT and was recently named ‘Start-up of the Year’ for the AIIA’s Digital Canberra 25th anniversary iAwards.
About WIC
WIC’s mission as a Canberra based, non-profit organisation is to ”bring people together to champion women in Information and Communication.” In order to meet this mission, the organisation has 5 strategies targeted towards those who support women in this industry. They include:
- To provide events where women in the information and communication industry can network for mutual benefit
- To inspire women in this industry to take their careers to new heights
- To publicly recognise and promote the talents and contributions of WIC members
- To provide a range of activities to increase the participation of women in the information and communication industries
- To have fun! One of the most valuable aims of WIC is to ensure that members, interested associates, supporters and participants have fun. This has been, and will continue to be, a focus in all WIC events and activities.
Contacts
Timothy McKay
CEO and Founder – OK RDY
0439 472 589
Megan James
WIC Vice-President
0418 454 953